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[title of show] is a one-act musical, with music and lyrics by Jeff Bowen and a book by Hunter Bell. The show chronicles its own creation as an entry in the New York Musical Theatre Festival, and follows the struggles of the author and composer/lyricist and their two actress friends during the initial brief (three-week) creative period, along with subsequent events leading up to the show's production.
[title of show] was chosen for production by the Musical Theatre Festival and premiered there, in September 2004, in New York City. It later ran off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre in 2006, earning a second limited run the same year, then played at Broadway's Lyceum Theatre in 2008 for 13 previews and 102 regular performances. Writer/stars Bowen and Bell, as well as director Michael Berresse all won Obie Awards for their work on the off-Broadway production, and Bell was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical.
The musical spawned a recurring video blog about the show's journey to Broadway called The [title of show] Show.
As the show opens (Untitled Opening Number) Jeff and Hunter are discussing the possibility of entering the upcoming New York Musical Theatre Festival. The submissions deadline is only three weeks away, but they long to make their mark in the theatre world (Two Nobodies In New York. Jeff laments his lack of inspiration. When his blank writing pad begins to look like Hunter, ideas begin to flow (An Original Musical.
The two men recruit their friends Susan and Heidi to help with the project. As the guys battle writer's block, the girls become voices in their heads, making suggestions. "Writing should feel easy," Susan says, "like a monkey driving a speedboat" (Monkeys and Playbills. Excitement mounts; if the show is a hit, they could replace the four ugly mismatched chairs on the set with chairs covered in diamonds. Hunter even ponders winning a Tony (The Tony Award Song — but Jeff reminds him that they have already cut the song he is in the midst of singing. Jeff and Hunter discuss their ambition to write and compose for a living (Part of It All.
Doubts and insecurities surface. Heidi wonders what she has gotten herself into, and Hunter worries that they are just stringing sketches and novelty songs together, that they need something "a little meatier" (I Am Playing Me. Susan and Heidi become suspicious of each other (What Kind Of Girl Is She?. Hunter and Jeff are getting increasingly discouraged: What were they thinking? Will they even finish? Susan says the "vampires" are devouring their confidence and creativity, and they cannot let that happen (Die, Vampire, Die!. Reenergized, the men finish the show, and the ensemble tackles the festival paperwork (Filling Out The Form. Since the deadline is upon them and nobody can come up with a killer name for the show, they decide to leave the title-of-show field untouched — which makes [title of show] the name of their show. "What if they don't pick it?" someone worries. "Well, that'll be Act 2."
But their little three-week-old musical is chosen! During the festival the four revel in their six performances, and lament that it all must end (September Song. They note, as a bonus, that "fancy industry people" are in the audience. Heidi and Susan reconcile their differences and bond over their supporting roles (Secondary Characters.
As plans progress toward taking the musical to Broadway, things begin to unravel. The four friends argue over the wisdom of making changes to the script, or leaving it alone (Change It/Don't Change It. Hunter and Jeff, after contacting numerous famous Broadway actresses, finally get a positive response from Sutton Foster, and Hunter suggests casting her in Heidi's role to generate some "buzz." Tensions build, and finally everything boils over at a publicity photo shoot (Awkward Photo Shoot. Heidi is upset that Hunter wants to replace her, Susan is concerned about profit-sharing, Jeff is letting the "vampires" get to him again, Larry (the keyboardist) feels snubbed because he's not in any of the press photos, and Hunter lashes out at all of them. Everyone leaves in a huff.
That night, Hunter breaks the ice by apologizing. More apologies follow, and the four wax nostalgic over younger, happier, less complicated days (A Way Back To Then. They now understand that the show must sink or swim as it is, with the four of them, without a "bankable" star, because their relationship and the quality of their creation are more important to them than commercial success; they would rather be "...nine people's favorite thing than a hundred people's ninth-favorite thing" (Nine People's Favorite Thing. "Let's just put it out there and see what happens," Jeff says — which, of course, they have just finished doing — so the show ends (Finale.
At curtain call, the four ugly chairs rise into the rafters and return encrusted in diamonds.